By Your Side
by DaMastah101
Summary: After Asuka defeats Lili in their battle during the 7th King of the Iron Fist Tournament, Lili... moves in with her! And she wants to learn Asuka's fighting style? Based on Asuka's Character Story Ending in Tekken 7. Multi-chapter.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Tekken. However if I did, Asuka and Lili would be a couple right now or at least very close by now...

"Text" – Speaking

'Text' – Thinking

Text – Narration or regular text

[Chapter 1]

 **ASUKA POV**

With a loud yawn, I stretched my arms upwards afer a good night's rest and looked forward to a new day of opportunity. As the saying went: another day, another dollar! ...or I guess Yen, since we were in Japan after all.

I smiled at that train of thought. "Yosh! Things might be looking great today after all!" I told myself, as I had the feeling today was going to be a good one.

"Asuka! I need my beauty sleep and the clock says it's only 5AM! So will you simmer down a bit!" I went limp at hearing that voice and was filled with shock. It came from above. And now that I took in my surroundings, I noticed I was in a two-decker bed instead of my single one. 'Hmm, I guess that's why I slept so good last night since the mattress was way bet- THAT'S NOT THE POINT! What was _she_ doing in my room?!'

"Princess?! Why the hell are you in my room! I could have you arrested for this trespassing!" I shouted at her in annoyance. She then went down the side ladder of the top bed and crawled up to mine. We were now sitting in front of each other. She had the smuggest grin on her face as she stared at me with mischief in her eyes.

"Well? What the hell are you doing here?!"

"Asuka, don't you mean **our** room? I do live here now after all". That caused all possible arguments I had to die down in my throat. I finally remembered what happened. As that look of epiphany glazed over my facial features and I was paralyzed in thought, I noticed I was wrapped in something... warm.

"L-Lili?!" I was being hugged by my rival for some reason. I took in her scent. She smelled like lilies and lavenders coupled with the gentle breeze that was oftentimes at beaches. It was nice, I grudgingly admitted to myself.

"Are you always this grouchy? I'm not even trying to rile you up today..." she began with a pout.

In all fairness, she hasn't called me any names today so far and was actually polite for once. Damn it, now I'm looking like the bad guy here! She even hugged me for no reason while having the nerve to smell all nice and aaaaaargh! I was about to make a snappy reply when she beat me in speaking up first.

" Asuka, I need 30 minutes more of sleep then I'll be up and about, adieu" and with that, she went back up to her bed with an audible but faint snicker. I was still there, frozen in contemplation. I mulled over yesterday's events that led up to my current predicament...

 _ **The previous day, at the 7th King of the Iron Fist Tournament...**_

 _After a very long fight, I barely managed to slip in a blow at Lili, which net me the victory. It irked me, how the hell did this spoiled brat become this good? I even had the feeling she was holding back!_

 _I then saw her slowly get up and... press something in her ear, and seemingly talk to someone. Was she making a call? 'What the hell is going on'?! I thought to myself._

" _Did you... just take a call?" I had to ask. I wasn't prepared for what she was about to answer though._

 _Lili replied extravagantly, with a pose even: "Just so you know, today I'll be moving in your house"_

" _Huh? What're you talking about?" I meekly asked back. She was burning with eagerness and had a mischievous glint in her eyes. We just fought for crying out loud! Now I'm convinced she let me win._

" _And I'll be learning the Kazama-style Traditional Style."_

" _What?!"_

" _Relax! It's already done. I just bought your house and your dojo."_

 _Then she went on and on about how she knew everything about me, my encounter with Feng, how we became too poor to even fix my bike, she even dug up my family tree and mentioned how I could be dragged into the mess of that damned Mishima family! Well at least she fixed the dojo according to her... 'WHY WAS SHE DANCING AND SPEAKING SO FAST WHILE TELLING ME ALL THIS?!' I yelled internally as I could only stare at her ridiculousness._

" _Now, we really should head home! Tout de suite!" and with that she pranced away then went to strut in a dignified manner out of the arena._

 _Finally breaking me out of my stupor, I could only do the one thing I was able to. Chase after her and get on with it. "Whoa, whoa, hold on! This is a joke right? Listen!"_

" _Do hurry up. No one likes a slowpoke." And with that, we both left the arena. Lili had a lot of explaining to do..._

 _The day went by quickly. Lili told me she was dead serious about learning the Kazama Style and that I was supposed to teach her, and I quote, "your martial arts form that could even subdue the gods! Teach me Asuka, and then I will be unstoppable in any tournament! Except I guess by you of course since this is your style, even though I would normally deny that with the burning passion of a thousa-"_

" _WILL YOU STOP THAT DANCING?! And speak normally princess!" I interjected with a huff as I directed her to my room... well, it was our room now. Lili had my previous bed thrown out, insisting we use this two-decker bed instead. She said something about my previous resting equipment being "only fit for commoners". With a sigh, I just let her do her thing and I just sat on a chair and watched as Lili began to rearrange my room in a manner that would accommodate us both. She wasn't bad at it too so I didn't object too much. Things like where her clothes went in the wardrobe cabinet, and other mundane stuff like that._

 **Present day**

I guess I could live with this arrangement. Lili had already fallen back asleep and would likely be out for 30 more minutes as she put it. I stepped out of my bed and onto the center of my room, trying to look at her prone and sleeping form. She had a smile on her face.

Shaking my head, I went over and covered her up with her blanket. She may be an annoyance but I wouldn't want her feeling cold. I then went out of my room and into the kitchen, looking to cook breakfast for everybody.

'I wonder, maybe... Lili and I could get along?' I thought to myself, it would really be nice if I was being honest to myself. Not that I'd ever admit it to her out loud.

 **LILI POV**

As I saw Asuka leave the room, my eyes shot open. I was pretending to be asleep, if only to see what she was doing.

"She didn't want me to feel cold hmm?" I said to myself with a smile. This was nice, we weren't bickering for once. Maybe I should be polite more often and stop riling her up? 'Nah, I love seeing her various expressions whenever I do something to get under her skin' I thought to myself with a chuckle.

I was serious about learning her style. Sure, it was a good martial art and Asuka had beaten me a lot more than I have bested her when it came to our fights, but I had another reason why I wanted to learn the art, and even live here with her. The real reason. I wanted to be closer to Asuka.

Yes. I, Emilie de Rochefort, wanted to be closer to the person I admire so much. I admire Asuka. Dare say, I like her even. As a friend? More than that? Who knows. But yes, I wanted to be closer to Asuka Kazama. Call it a roundabout way and maybe I could've been less haughty about it, but what's done is done. I nodded to myself with that thought.

How did it become like this, oh dear reader?

You see, I used to hate Asuka Kazama. It all started when I met her in the 5th tournament. I had suffered a humiliating loss, and I, Emilie de Rochefort, Lili for short, did not just lose to some random hussy! I was infuriated! Exasperated! Annoyed! Pulsating with anger!

"You! A lowly peasant such as yourself actually managed to beat me?!" were the words I yelled at her back then. She returned the favor with a snappy comeback saying she had no time to waste with me when she had to get to a certain man to avenge her father. Later on I would find out she meant Feng Wei. The Chinese kenpo master who killed his own teacher in his quest for power. A power-hungry monkey.

I trained hard since that first loss, and we met again during the 6th tournament. Well there barely was a tournament anyway due to the war caused by Jin Kazama and the Mishima Zaibatsu. But that's not important right now. As I said, we met again around that time, it was when I had just enrolled at her school in the hopes of being able to actively challenge her more... and follow her around of course.

As the limo parked in front of the school gates, I suddenly saw Asuka on her bike with a bento box, one of those Japanese lunch boxsets, hurrying to get to the school. But since my limo suddenly appeared, it caused her to fall over and crash, spilling all of her food. She was furious and admittedly, I deserved being lashed at. However my pride back then didn't really let me acknowledge that and thus, another fight happened.

We had several more fights after that as I kept pestering her whenever the chance presented itself. She won most of them but once in a while I had victories as well. I'd say counting the fight yesterday, the record would be 20-11. That wasn't bad in my opinion considering it was my self-taught style versus her very powerful Kazama Style! All the more reason why I wanted to learn it as well. 'And maybe we could even add some moves from my fighting style.' I hummed.

Then came the tag tournament. Apparently this was the 2nd one and it was hosted by a Heihachi who suddenly became young again. It was weird because even Jin planned on joining and he called for an international ceasefire during the duration of this tournament. Asuka didn't want to participate this time and I was surprised when she told me this while we were eating our lunch one day during lunch break. Yes, we were classmates and even though we were fierce rivals, we sometimes ate lunch together.

"Princess, I don't want to join that stupid tournament this time!" she huffed.

"Asuka Kazama, pray do tell, why aren't you joining? Has my rival become soft over time? Perhaps you're finally admitting that I'm better?" I nudged her elbow with a laugh. She just glared at me then went back to eating her sushi.

"You wish. I just... " she looked around a bit before whispering in my ear: "I don't have... a partner..."

I laughed even harder at that. She looked at me as if I had grown two heads. I just looked at her with a knowing smile.

Okay so maybe it was a smug grin instead but you get the picture.

Two weeks later we were at the registration booth for the 2nd tag tournament. Oh memories. We got very far in the tournament but we lost to the tag team of Feng Wei and Wang Jinrei. Surprisingly, Feng respected the old master Wang and so they entered the tournament together. Their combined martial arts prowess overwhelmed the barely functional team of myself and Asuka as our bickering got the best of us. It wasn't all bad though, after the tournament, Jin's war resumed but luckily the area where our school was didn't really get affected. Asuka and I didn't bicker as much after that.

I don't know about her but, it was around that point my hate completely dissipated. It had already diminished significantly when I moved to the same school as her, but after the tag tournament, we actually bonded. Sure we still fight every now and then, and the bickering didn't completely stop since I had my pride and Asuka had her temper, but I guess... I considered her my friend. No, scratch that, I considered her my best friend. Maybe even more...

And that brings us to where we are after the 7th tournament. Of course yesterday, I was put into the losers bracket after losing to Asuka. Not that I really cared. I fought seriously but when I saw her becoming fatigued, I purposely let a gap in my strings to give her the chance to steal the win. Luckily, she took the bait and secured her win, making my alibi of wanting to learn her style and live with her go smoothly as planned.

"You're right, dearest Asuka. Things might be looking great today." I said to myself with a smile as I reminisced more of my previous encounters with Asuka. I was broke out of my stupor when I hear Mr. Kazama knock on the door and inform me that Asuka made breakfast while telling me good morning. I smiled back my thanks. After making myself presentable, I head out the room and into the dining room that was currently filled with the heavenly smell of Asuka's cooking.

-Chapter 1 END-

 **A/N: AAAAAND SCENE. Yep, I'm back and to kickstart my glorious return, here's an Asuka and Lili fanfic! I've always wanted to write one for these two because they're my favorite Tekken pairing. I was worried how I'd start up the circumstances leading them to become buddy-buddy though.**

 **Luckily, Tekken 7 answered my prayers! I got spoiled on Asuka's Character Story ending so yeah, that part with the flashback and Lili dancing while saying she's moving in with Asuka was the ending lol. I'm still on cloud nine regarding that. :3**

 **Hopefully I can actually update this regularly... I still have so many pending updates on my other fanfics and here I am starting another one smh. Peace!**


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: a noun that refers to the act of repudiating another's claim or renouncing one's own. Oh you meant regarding copyright? Fine, I don't own Tekken. Keep rubbing it in now will you. *grumbles*

[Chapter 2]

 **LILI POV**

Emilie de Rochefort is a refined woman. Yes, I just called myself refined. I can sense you rolling your eyes right now, reader.

Be that as may, I am also a woman who appreciates good food when she is given the oppurtunity to. Granted, I can be picky about some stuff like furniture, clothing and the like. But not food. No, food is food and this lady can appreciate the effort and love poured into each new dish by their makers. Life has its ups and downs. Food was one of the ups and I, Emilie de Rochefort, looked forward to that up every time.

I've always liked embarking in new experiences and trying out new things. Combine that eagerness to embrace new things with the aforementioned reverence of food, and you bet I'd have a good time.

So when this glorious feast was laid out before me, courtesy of one currently smiling Asuka, I felt myself getting excited. As she turned to look at me, her face painted with a look of satisfaction, I could only nod back at her and her father with a smile in return as we all took in the sight before us. 'Asuka's pretty awesome for this. I won't say that out loud though, teehee.' I thought inwardly as I inhaled the glorious smell of the freshly laid goodness that was Asuka's cooking. She may have been a brute most of the time, but it seems Asuka had a smidgen of female delicacy in her. I chuckled a bit at that thought.

"What's so funny princess?! You got something to say?" it seems Asuka heard my snickering and a comical pout was pasted on her features. Before I was able to reply, Mr. Kazama intervened.

"Asuka, not now. We're about to eat and it won't do good to disrespect the food. Even if you were the one who made it."

"Y-Yes, dad." After that exchange, all 3 of us turned back to look at what we were about to partake in.

Asuka had prepared 3 sets of what appeared to be a traditional Japanese breakfast. One for myself, one for her dad, and one for her. There was a bowl of steamed rice portioned generously in its serving, a hefty slice of grilled salmon, a pickled side dish which Asuka referred to as "tsukemono", some nori leaves, two pieces of shrimp tempura, and a bowl of miso soup. I would be drooling right now but I held myself back in front of my hosts as that wouldn't be proper of a lady with an upbringing of high class such as myself. 'God, this looks so good...'

Mr. Kazama, followed by Asuka then had their hands in a prayer position. Not wanting to be disrespectful, I followed suit. The two then said in chorus: "Itedakimasu!"

"Itey-daki-masoo." as I tried to imitate what they said.

Okay that came out wrong. I blushed a bit in embarassment as Mr. Kazama had an amused look while Asuka was snickering. Probably payback for my earlier chuckle. I'll show you all one day! But right now that wasn't important, as I didn't want to keep this wonderful food waiting any longer.

Now it was time for the real test. So far everything looked amazing. But did the taste match the look? Can the "Gang Mediator" actually impress someone of my palette? We shall see.

I readied my chopsticks, broke off a piece from my salmon fillet and took some of the white rice. I didn't have difficulty using the asian utensil as I had my fair share of experience eating in Japanese restaurants. Chopsticks were often used in such establishments so I took it upon myself to learn how to use them.

I took my first bite of the meal. Under my peripheral vision, I noticed Asuka and her father staring in anticipation. Neither having started on their own meals and were instead observing me with mischievous eyes, mostly Asuka doing so while Mr. Kazama sipped on his jasmine tea.

As the flavors exploded in my mouth with glee, I shakingly dropped my chopsticks onto the rice bowl and took a whiff of the miso soup. Even more deliciousness! Asuka, what have you done?!

In a similar manner as with my chopsticks, I slowly placed the bowl of soup down and turned to Asuka and Mr. Kazama.

Moments of silence ensued. And then, I exclaimed.

"The moment of victory, I love it!"

More silence. You could hear the cicadas chirping outside the window. It was autumn indeed. The sun continued to shine bright, its warmth covering the area while leaves were being blown around by the morning breeze.

"Huh?"/"Are you okay Emilie?" were the responses of Asuka and her dad at my sudden outburst. As expected of a literary expert such as myself, I had to express my current unparalleled glee in a detailed and vivid manner.

"Asuka, your food is of utmost excellence indeed! Having been able to experience such perfection in the form of your cooking is a victory to me. My, who would have known that monsieur Kazama over here-"

"You can call me Akira, Emilie..."

"-had been housing his own master chef! Why haven't you entered cooking competitions my rival! Your prowess in the kitchen matches your abilities in battle! We must tell the world of the immaculate blessing that is your cooking ability! Alert the masses! Spread the news!-"

"Lili, you're doing it again..."

Eventually I simmered down and we all began to eat normally while commencing some small talk. Mr. Kazama, or Akira was surprisingly attentive as I drabbled on about how Asuka and I had this great rivalry. I detailed on some of our encounters, much to Asuka's chagrin.

After insisting to Akira and Asuka that I be the one to clean up, they headed over to the Kazama Dojo. Something about practicing katas or forms as I was told. True to my word, I cleaned up the dining area nicely and had the dishes done in no time. I consider myself a clean freak in all honesty. I mean, years during my childhood observing how the housekeepers kept the Rochefort mansion spic and span lead to me developing a cleaning habit after trying out the vacuum machine one time.

I liked my things to be as clean as my beautiful self, thank you very much.

Whenever papa wasn't looking, I'd secretly help in cleaning the mansion even at the multiple remarks of scolding from the staff which varied from "Miss Lili! You don't need to do that!" or "Mr. Rochefort would get mad if he found out you were being made to do this!", yet I merely brush them off saying I was happy to help. What papa doesn't know won't hurt him! Then again, it's not as if my cleaning streak was the only thing hidden from the Rochefort Patriarch aka my father. He still thinks I'm on modelling tours or whatever creative excuse I manage to give him whenever I go out to fight.

Someday I do hope to come clean with him about the fighting, no pun intended regarding that cleaning bit haha, but papa can be such a worrywart sometimes. So I hesitate and the status quo remains as it is.

Grinning from the memories I had back in Monaco, I finished tidying up the Kazama dining area and stepped outside. The weather was mighty fine today. I then remembered that Asuka and her father were at the Kazama Dojo, which was a short walk from the Kazama household. I trotted over towards the direction of the Dojo and had a bit of pep in my step. The meal was good, but it was time to kick some butt!

 **ASUKA POV**

"Knowing princess over there, she'd probably make a mess instead of actually being able to clean. Dad, I should go check on her."

"That's not nice Asuka, you shouldn't underestimate Emilie like that."

"But Dad..."

"No buts dear. Emilie was nice enough to volunteer to clean up and we should respect her wishes. What's one of the things I've always taught you during our sessions in the Dojo?"

"I really should check on her Dad thou-" I insist. I didn't want my rice cooker getting broken or the dining table being split in half. Lili came from a wealthy lifestyle so she probably wasn't used to menial tasks such as cleaning! Dad didn't understand!

"Well?"

"She might've bro-"

"Well?" dad repeated with a stern voice. He looked at me with a smile, but I knew better. That smile spelled out "If you don't stop this I will have you do katas for 10 hours straight." and I had no plan of doing that any time soon...

"Never... sigh... judge a book by it's cover. Underestimating your opponent is the mark of arrogance." I robotically stated. Dad looked pleased at hearing that.

"That's right. So I don't want to hear anymore of you being too uptight on Emilie alright?"

"Yes dad... haaah..." I slumped in defeat as we were greeted by the Dojo's entrance. I went straight to the changing area and put on my hakama and my Aikido training outfit. The other students were to come in an hour later but Dad and I always went earlier to get in some sparring. A good spar after a meal was ideal. I finished tying up my headband onto my forehead and went out into the general fighting space of the Kazama Dojo.

I was then met with the sight of Lili talking with Dad about something, both laughing while doing so. Now that I think of it, Lili did say she was gonna start living with us in order to learn the Kazama Style. Sighing heavily, I cracked my knuckles and went up to them. Might as well get this over with...

-Chapter 2 END-

 **A/N: An update? From DaMastah101? What alternate timeline is this?!**

 **I'm so sorry for the very long gap between the first chapter and this one, but here is the second chapter to By Your Side! It's not that long and I know I should update more but fear not! Lately I've been having more free time so I should be able to update more often. Till next chapter guys! Thanks for reading and happy holidays everyone!**


	3. Chapter 3 - Feelings

**Disclaimer: DaMastah101 doesn't own the rights to the Tekken series, obviously. Gosh, it's been a while since he's needed to state that disclaimer for this story. As for who I might be, it's not that important. Ahaha~! Now then, here's the latest chapter of "By Your Side"! Happy reading~**

* * *

 **[Chapter 3 - Feelings]**

 **ASUKA'S POV**

I lay in my bed, quite exhausted. Presently, I had been drained of my energy and there was nothing more that I currently wanted other than a good night's rest.

Yet, my eyes were still wide open, staring at nothing in particular. Sleep kept avoiding me like the plague.

"Why is it so hard to sleep?" I asked myself in slight frustration.

The current time was 12PM midnight, and I couldn't sleep at all. Thoughts concerning a certain blonde girl kept flooding my mind. Various images and thoughts of Lili, my sworn rival, kept swirling around in my subconscious. The same girl that suddenly moved in with me after our fight in the tournament.

Yep, how could I forget, she lives with me and my dad now. And right now, princess happened to be sleeping above me. We were using a two-decker bunk bed, after all.

As for why I was so exhausted? It's quite simple, really.

My mind pondered over everything that happened this day. Most of my tiredness came from dealing with the blonde aristocrat, who seemed to have a knack for giving me a headache. In more ways than one. 'Can't say I'm too mad at the girl though. That's just how Lili is and I'm used to her quirkiness.'

Firstly, at the Kazama Dojo. Because even that place wasn't safe from my princess' antics.

Lili had the bright idea of challenging my father to a spar, with the twist of using only the Kazama Style. She didn't use her own moves, fighting style or whatever. Nope. She actually intended to spar with my dad, a master of the Kazama Style, while using a bastardized version of it that she picked up from the multiple times I've fought with her.

She even said this, and I quote, "Monsieur Kazama, in order to fully understand your powerful style, I challenge you to a friendly spar! I won't even use anything other than Kazama Style-moves!"

My dad, not one to back down a challenge, happily accepted it with a grin. "I keep telling you to call me Akira, but I accept your offer Emilie!"

Before the spar began, she went up to me and said "Behold, Asuka Kazama. I am going to use your own fighting style against your father. I've fought you so many times, that I've picked up on some of your attacks! With your powerful techniques aiding me, I shall be victorious!"

Naturally, I voiced out my disagreement. Sure, I was already one of the best practicioners of the Kazama Style, but this is dad we're talking about here. Even though he lost to Feng, he's still the master of this dojo. Even though I didn't show it, I kept track of the fights Lili and I had. My win count was more than hers, and that's when she's using her own fighting style.

As it stands, she wants to use a copy of my style against dad in a friendly spar? She's doomed to fail!

"Princess, are you sure that's a good idea? Can't you just use your own fighting style?"

"Oh perish the thought! If I am to learn the almighty Kazama Style, I must first fully immense myself in it!" that response caused me to shake my head in disagreement. She then went back to dad, and after bowing respectfully to each other, began the spar. The students of the Kazama Dojo were present as well.

Lili was going to get wrecked with a crowd watching her. Even I felt sorry for the blonde. But since she won't listen to reason, princess brought this on herself.

As expected, princess got the tar beat out of her. Even though I kept yelling at her to just cease this madness and use her own moves, she didn't. She kept stubbornly continuing with this one-sided fight, hellbent on using poorly replicated versions of signature Kazama Style moves such as the _"Demon Slayer"_ , the _"White Heron Dance"_ ,the _"Whiplash Combo"_ and even the _"Kazama 10-hit combo"_. It was like trying to play soccer all of a sudden, when you've been trained and played basketball your entire life.

The main problem was that Lili was trying to incorporate her grace and fluidity while doing the moves, instead of using her body as a pillar and focusing on the power and impact of the moves. She lacked power. The forms and movement were replicated faithfully by Lili, but without the power behind the moves, it was all moot.

Take Demon Slayer, for example. It was a forward-moving lift motion that used the right arm as its main tool. You took two or three steps forward in a downward and lunging trajectory, then while keeping the momentum, you swing your right arm in an upward arc. The left arm is used to maintain the stability of the right arm, as the Demon Slayer launches the opponent high up into the ground.

When done by a dainty and finesse-obssessed woman such as Lili however... not only did her Demon Slayer not launch the opponent, but it just bumped into my dad's chest and he wasn't even fazed. Dad then swept princess off of her feet using the move _"Sacred Blade",_ which was a forceful low circular kick, and Lili was down for the count.

Yet, even though Lili was obviously getting wrecked, she had a smile the entire time. It confused me. If it were me in that situation, I would've been very angry for failing. But Lili was different. She just took it all in stride, and was even happily chatting with my dad, after getting patched up in the aftermath of the spar. The students were all motivated to practices their katas even harder, after seeing Lili act gracefully even in defeat.

Which was messed up. During a lot of the times I've bested her in our battles, she would throw a damn tantrum. Sometimes she'd even accuse me of cheating! And yet now, she's acting like some humble girl who only wanted to learn? It baffled me to no end.

During lunch time, it was my dad who cooked this time. Lili also praised his food, but not to the same extent as her praises of my cooked breakfast. She even told my father that she was excited for more of my cooking in future meals.

Somehow, I felt kinda happy that princess really liked my food the most. Not that I'd ever say that to her out loud. That girl would never let it go if I did. Knowing her, she'd even tease me with that typical ojou-sama laugh you see in anime.

The rest of the day pretty much consisted of Lili trying to help dad with something, whether it be trimming the bonsai trees we had, or writing calligraphy, and me stressing over it. Waiting for princess to screw up somewhere. I loomed over her like a hawk, and every time Lili caught me, she just winked and went back to what she was doing.

Fortunately, she ended up doing those various tasks without fail. But my mind got overworked and I ended up feeling tired as hell anyway. Maybe dad was right, and I'm just being too uptight.

And so, I remained staring at nothing here on my bed.

Finally, after who knows how long of blankly gazing at a wall, I fell asleep.

When I woke up, it was was pretty early, the clock on my drawer informing me that it was only 4AM in the morning. 'I only got about three or four hours of sleep, damn it.'

That meant I need a couple more hours of shut eye to function properly.

While I was preparing to return to sleep for a few more hours though, I realize that I wasn't alone on the bed anymore. Turning to my right, I was greeted with luscious golden hair.

Lili had snuck into my bed, and currently had me in a cuddling position. She was holding onto me, and sleeping peacefully. Her arm was snaked around my waist, and she had a dreamy smile plastered on her face.

"Princess?!" I told myself quietly in barely controlled surprise, so that I wouldn't wake up the sleeping beauty. Yes, I can admit that she was beautiful, even if she drove me crazy sometimes. Got a problem with that, readers?!

Seeing no way to escape this, I accepted my current predicament and adjusted my body so that I was now facing her directly. She seemed to tighten her hold on me after that. Her legs brushed against my own, and our chests bumped into each other. I could feel her heartbeat.

'She smells quite nice... Asuka, what the fuck are you thinking?! This is princess we're talking about here! The same girl that keeps stalking you just to challenge you into fights and shit! The same girl that transferred to your school to continue that rivalry crap! The same girl that bought the deed to your house and moved in with you for mundane reasons!' I mentally reproached myself. But as I kept scolding myself, I couldn't stop from taking in the tantalizing scent of her hair. The comforting feeling of her arm wrapped around me. The soft lull of her sleeping breaths.

Emilie de Rochefort was a beautiful girl.

"Lili..." I felt my cheeks heating up due to the close proximity of our bodies.

Yep, I'm definitely not getting some sleep anymore. Not when I have THIS in front of me.

I tried closing my eyes, in the hopes that I'd be able to fall asleep again.

But sleep never came back. No, I was forced to endure these mesmerizing and alluring sensations I currently felt. So instead, I pretended to be asleep. I kept my eyes closed and made sure I was very still.

After quite some time, I opened my eyes to peek at the girl beside me. She was still sleeping. I found myself staring at my rival's facial features. My eyes trailed over her soft lips, her flowing blonde hair, her wonderfully-shaped nose, and various other parts of her face that I could focus on.

I'm starting to sound like a pervert, ugh. But I can't help it! Maybe it's the lack of sleep...

'What would it be like to hold her?' a sudden thought enters my frazzled mind. No Asuka, bad Asuka! Don't do it!

...I hate myself sometimes.

I'm pretty sure that I was going to regret this later on, but whatever. I wrapped my arms around the sleeping blonde as well, and brought her closer to me, so that both of use were now cuddling each other. It felt... quite nice. I let the soothing comfort of her warmth overpower me, and I continued to relish in these nice feelings.

As we lay together on my bed, I had a feeling of contentment.

Hours later, I was still pretending to be asleep, when I felt Lili stir.

She was waking up.

'Shit! What am I gonna do?!' I frantically hyperventilated within my mind. She was going to find out that I cuddled her too and I can't release her now or she'll also find out that I did it consciously and willingly!

As if responsding to my panicked thoughts, I suddenly hear her speak. Right now, her voice was like that of an angel to me.

"Oh, my precious Asuka-chan is still sleeping... that was one of the best slumbers I've ever had. And she's hugging me too. She didn't drive me away, awwwwwww~"

Darn it Lili, stop saying such things! I'm trying to fake-sleep here! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?!

"I wish I could stay here forever, but I promised Monsieur Kazama- I mean Akira, that I'd be the one making breakfast today. You're in for a treat when you wake up~"

She's leaving the room?

I should feel relieved but... why do I feel sad about that? 'Can't she sleep in a bit longer...'

Without warning, I felt something warm press against my cheek. It was the feeling of Lili's soft lips.

She kissed me.

Princess kissed me. Lili actually kissed me. Granted, it's only on my cheek, but she kissed me!

The moment her lips touched my skin, I felt a rush of excitement run through my body.

She actually kissed me!

'Lili?! W-w-w-w-what?!' my mind went into overdrive after her affectionate gesture. I couldn't get over the fact that my blonde rival just kissed me like that. She kissed me and didn't even feel embarrassed from doing that!

"Sleep tight, Asuka-chan. If only we got along like this whenever you're awake... oh well. One day, I'll be able to openly act like this around you. For now, I have to keep up this charade of being your heated rival. Adieu, my love."

Shortly after, I felt her get up from the bed, and a few seconds later the sound of my bedroom door being shut was heard.

No longer needing to be fake-asleep, my eyes shot open and my face was flushed red.

"She likes me?!" princess liked me. I'm not assuming wrong here! She kissed me and even called me "her love"! Oh my kami-sama!

I touched the spot where she kissed me, and it felt like butterflies were swarming my stomach, fluttering about in a wild frenzy. For some unknown reason, I felt really happy.

"Lili... do I like you in that way too?"

I didn't know for sure. But if the bright smile on my face right now was any indication, then maybe I do.

 **-Chapter 3 END-**

* * *

 **A/N: I apologize for yet another lengthy waiting period. To tell you all the truth, I've been focused on two stories for another fandom, hence why this hasn't been updated quickly. If you visit my FFN profile, you'll see that I'm very invested in my two fanfics for the game "Doki Doki Literature Club". Those stories/fanfics are "The World Beyond The Screen" and "The Color Pink". If you're a DDLC fan in addition to being a Tekken fan, you can check those stories out if you're intereted.**

 **Thank you all for the favorites, follows and the reviews. I greatly appreciate them all. See you guys in the next update!**


	4. Chapter 4 - l'amour de ma vie

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Tekken, the usual. Oh, and here's an update after so long, cheers!

* * *

 **[Chapter 4 - l'amour de ma vie]**

 **ASUKA'S POV**

"Asuka Kazama, is there any particular reason for that non-stop gaze you've been directing at me? Hello, Earth to Kazama? Are you even listening to me right now? It's like I'm hopelessly talking to a wall of dry paint..."

Upon hearing her voice, I was brought back to reality. I also noticed that Lili had been waving her hand in front of my face, trying to catch my attention. 'Gosh, her skin looks so soft...'

Having to keep up appearances though, I stuttered out a reply.

"W-wha?! Uh... it's nothing, L-Lili."

Princess stared at me for a bit with questioning eyes and a raised eyebrow, before shrugging it off and going back to her jasmine tea. I could just stare at her all day sitting there and looking so pretty like that... Those lips of hers that had a light touch of lipstick...

'Gah! Stop that, naughty Asuka!' I sighed to myself. It scared me a bit, how far I was acting compared to my normal self. But it begged the question.

How could she be so calm like this?! Why am I the only one fidgetting like some fangirl crushing on their idol?! Wasn't she the one who kissed me? I mean, sure, she thought I was still asleep. But come on! I already know that she...

That Lili... likes me.

But she wasn't aware that I already found out about that. And I plan on keeping it that way for now.

Still... she looks so freaking pretty, it's crazy...

"You're acting pretty weird today, Asuka Kazama."

Upon hearing the remark, my eyes widened. I must've been caught staring dreamily at her again! "Ahahaha... don't mind me, princess..."

"Really? We're going with that? Who are you and what have you done with my foul-mouthed and boyish rival who wouldn't let even half a day pass without getting into a fight with me?"

I glowed in embarassment. Normally, I'd chime back at her with some kind of snappy retort, but today I found it really hard to do for some reason. Man, this love thing really sucks the fight out of you!

"Damn it, I need to stop these lovey-dovey thoughts before she finds out I actually like her too! Damn you Lili and your pretty face!" I exclaimed while palming my forehead in barely contained frustration. This was getting out of hand, and I needed to regain composure for now.

I took a deep breath, before facing the Rochefort once again, only to see her with an expression that matched that of a deer in headlights. Her eyes were wide, staring off into the distance with a blush dusting her cheeks.

Now it was my turn to be confused on what she was on about.

"Uh... something the matter, Lili?"

Hearing my question, she stared directly at me with what could only be taken as an 'Are you serious?!' look. She even tilted her head slightly to the side. It was like Princess expected me to know what was riling her up.

Being who I was, it annoyed me a bit. I wasn't that good with, what's it called? Oh, that's right. I wasn't that good with the whole 'reading between the lines' thing that a lot of people seem to do so easily. And so came the usual patented Asuka Kazama direct-style asking that I defaulted to instead.

"I can't really help you if you don't freaking spill out the beans you know, Princess."

She sighed, before gripping my shoulders. I mirrored her blush at the sudden touch.

"You do realize Asuka Kazama, that what I presume was supposed to be just your inner thoughts, had been spoken aloud? I'll repeat what you just said." she began, before doing a really crude impression of my voice.

 _"Damn it, I need to stop these lovey-dovey thoughts before she finds out I actually like her too! Damn you Lili and your pretty face!"_

Letting go of my shoulders after making her point, she now had a smirk plastered on her face that drove me insane. And I wasn't even sure if it was in the good way, because she looked so damn beautiful while doing it. "So... you like me, Asuka Kazama?"

Aaaaaand there it was. I've been outed by my own carelessness. Curse my big fat mouth for blurting it all out into the open air. So much at keeping it a secret for now. God damn it all. Could this get any worse?!

"You think I'm pretty, huh? Ahahahahaha, it looks like you've fallen for my charms, my fierce rival!" she highlighted in a sing-song voice while circling around me and going into a dance routine once again like whenever she was in one of her monologues.

You all have to understand, I was rattled, okay?! I really wasn't used to this whole love thing just yet! And with that being how it is, I ended up giving in and confessing to everything. Might as well owe up to it, since there really wasn't any escape anyway. And besides, I was tired of obssessing over these thoughts to the point of it being stressful.

And besides, maybe everything would turn out alright in the end? Look, you've already been caught red-handed already Asuka, just tell her! It won't be the end of the world! I'm sure even Princess would understand if you just told her how you really felt without beating around the bush and prolonging the inevitable. You already know that she likes you too anyway...

"I... I do. I think you're pretty, and I think I... like you, Emilie." I tried saying as earnestly as I could, even using her proper first name this time.

However, I must've surprised her, because she fell silent after my proper confession. Gone was her teasing and instead, Lili was being pretty bashful all of a sudden. It even looked like she suddenly found the floor of our house more interesting to look at than making eye-contact with me.

"L-Lili...?" I prodded. I had to be very careful here and approach with caution.

Her confident aura had suddenly vanished, and I found my frenemy-turned-crush awkwardly hiding her face by burying it hidden in her hands. Her voice was slightly muffled due to her palms covering her mouth slightly.

"That's the first time you've used my name..."

Man, I mean, just, goddamn if this wasn't the cutest fucking thing ever! Why the heck did Pricess have to be so unexpectedly adorable this time instead of her usual snooty self?! But it's true though. I usually called her by her nickname, "Lili", or my sarcastic term of "Princess" for her.

So calling her "Emilie" felt right, since it was a serious moment.

It also made me realize that I really did, freaking love this girl. She was annoying at times, and gave me tons of headaches in more ways than one. But ever since she moved here with me, I'll admit that I've grown to really like her company. We were already frenemies anyway.

Sure, we called each other rivals and stuff, and we even bickered a lot. Still do actually now that I think about it. But really, we were already friends. It was just that somehow, that friendship had turned to a mutual crushing spree that was just...

I gave into my lovestruck instincts, and scooped her into one big old hug. My brash action caused her to let out an audible "Eep!", before Lili started burying her face into my shoulder in further embarassment. It wasn't just her though, the mere act of actually hugging her this close made my face shine like a bright red tomato. We were both too embarassed and flustered right now to talk properly, I could tell.

So I took this chance to hold her in my arms for as long as it took. 'God, she smells so good too... I bet I also have a weird fucking look on my face right now...' these were the thoughts that danced in my brain as my nostrils inhaled her sweet scent. It made my head spin, especially since we were this goddamn close to each other! Good grief!

'I can't believe this is actually happening. Oh my Kami-sama!' I smiled awkwardly while still being very much embarassed about this whole thing going on right now. But at least I got the message across pretty clearly!

Yes, I really did like Emilie de Rochefort. Maybe, it was even love.

The Asuka a couple of months ago would be shaking her head at how l'm acting like a lovestruck shmuck right now, but screw it! I'm in love with you Princess, god damn it!

 *******By Your Side*******

 **LILI'S POV**

'I am having trouble comprehending the fact that this... this... this was actually happening! This isn't some lucid dream I'm having, right?!' I thought in mild panic to myself. To think that Asuka Kazama, the same girl known as the "Gang Mediator", that same slightly brutish girl would be the one to break from our normal status quo and actually confess first that she likes me!

Now I, Emilie de Rochefort, was a proud and confident woman. I rarely feared anything and I had much pride in the usual calm and collected demeanor that I carried without fail. A dignified and elegant lady, that was how I would usually be described by my fellow peers back in Monaco.

And yet, as I say that, here I am rendered mute because of Asuka's sudden attack! Gah, this isn't how I pictured the admission of the feelings I had for her to play out! Not at all, I say!

In the first place, never in a million years would I have guessed that she also liked me back. Now that in itself would normally have been cause of celebration, and I actually did express that quite a bit. I even managed to tease her about how she thought I was pretty, ahaha...

But to think she'd follow out her embarrassed stutter with such an earnest admission of her feelings... and the way she said my name...

Oh perish the thought! There was no possible way even I, Emilie De Rochefort, could've remained prefectly calm and poker-faced when presented with such an overbearing conundrum like this! Matters of the heart are no joke, I tell you this oh readers.

'And now she's hugging me this close... Asuka... Hnnnnnnnngggggghhhhhh~!' I must tell her. Now was the perfect time to tell her everything. It was only fair after all, especially since Asuka took the initiative and confessed first no matter how shy about it she must've been.

Thus, I decided to break off from my personal heaven of being in Asuka's arms in order to properly convey my thoughts to her in reply. My heart skipped a beat when I saw she looked a bit disappointed that our embrace had been cut off.

'You are going to be the death of me, Asuka Kazama! I'm gonna get a heart attack if you keep giving me such adorable faces like that out of nowhere!' I blushed even further before sucking in a deep breath and steadying my tone. This had to be done, post-haste.

And so began the defining moment in my life, where my formerly heated rival-slash-friend, had now fully transitioned into becoming something more.

"I guess it's obvious by now, but I too, feel the same."

She smiled at my reply, and I returned it with as much glee. Finally, after so long, I'm finally able to come clean with my feelings towards you, Asuka.

Asuka Kazama, my former rival.

The goal I used to be so distant from. An opponent that I struggled my hardest against. And the girl who had changed my life forever, the moment she had stepped into my world that fateful day. Even though I used to hate your guts, things are pretty different nowadays. We're even living under the same roof now, ahaha.

Asuka Kazama, my best friend.

You've always been there to listen to me. Even if I can go off on various tangents at times, you were there. And as much as I would've loathed to admit it in the past, you were the closest friend that I, Emilie de Rochefort, has ever had. No one has ever come close, and you've given color to my otherwise rigid life of being not much than a rich girl who snuck out to compete in Tekken tournaments.

From here on out, I won't be supressing my feelings anymore. No more self-imposed control. This was now the time to act upon my love for you, dearest Asuka.

"Yes indeed, I, Emilie de Rochefort, want to stay by your side."

And as our lips met, I knew it to be true for Asuka as well. And it made me very happy, from the bottom of my heart.

 **-Chapter 4 END-**

* * *

 **A/N:** Hopefully this chapter was decent after such a long wait, I'm very sorry about that. *crying face* But yeah, next chapter should be the start of their relationship. Look forward to some awkward hijinks and interactions between our pair. My utmost gratitude to everyone who followed, favorited, and reviewed this story despite the lack of consistent updates. Once again, thank you all!

Oh and a special shoutout goes to jettmanas, whose PM I haven't replied to yet for some reason. That goes to several other PMs I've received from others actually... anyways, I was reminded that I haven't updated this in a while, so thank you for that.

See you all in the next update. This has been DaMastah101. Peace!


End file.
